1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to ballast apparatus for providing stabilizing weight for lightweight structures such as portable barricades and signs and, more particularly, to a solid, one-piece, resilient, impact-resistant compression molded rubber ballast having features including a predetermined shape, perimeter, weight and holes that permit the device to be easily handled, affixed to and removed from barricade and sign structures, and stored for transport or between uses.
2. Description of the Related Art
The use of portable, lightweight barricades and signs with reflective stripe markings thereon to control or channel vehicular and pedestrian traffic, or to warn drivers and pedestrians of hazards, or for use at construction work sites or for crowd control, is well known. Such barricades are made of lightweight materials such as plastic that require added weight or ballast to stabilize and maintain the barricades in place against wind and other forces. The most commonly used ballast consists of bags of sand or other particulate material that are placed on the structural members of the barricade to provide weight and prevent inadvertent movement by the wind. See, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 4,298,186 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,762,444, for lightweight barricades with openings in the support members thereof where ballast in the form of sandbags may be placed to provide stability to the barricade. The disadvantages of using sandbags as ballast for barricades are well known. The use of sandbags is labor intensive in that the bags must be filled with sand and transported to the work site. Unless the bags are prepared by a machine, the weight of the ballast is not easily controlled. The attachment of sandbags to the barricade is a problem in that regulations prevent the placement of any object over the reflective stripes, which must remain visible at all times, whereby little space on the barricade is available for ballast. Sandbags are not easily attached to barricades and, consequently, are usually loosely placed on a structural member of the barricade, whereby the sandbags are easily knocked off or detached from the barricade. If it is desired to securely affix the bags to the barricade, additional labor is required. The bags are not durable and break easily when run over by vehicles or dropped or after several uses, which requires the ballast to be continuously monitored and frequently replenished. The presence of the particulate ballast material on the roadway poses a safety hazard with the use of bags of particulate material. Sandbags must be removed when the barricade is moved to another job site and, consequently, usually are discarded after use.
Prior attempts to overcome the disadvantages of using sandbags for ballast involve the design of barricades and signs having built in ballast systems. See, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 3,917,232; U.S. Pat. No. 4,104,980; and U.S. Pat. No. 4,852,511. However, such barricade and sign systems still require the ballast material to be placed and removed before and after each use of the barricade or sign and do not solve the problem of allowing louse particulate ballast material to be scattered on the roadway when a vehicle impacts the barricade.
It is therefore desirable to provide an improved ballast apparatus that avoids the problems inherent in the use of bags of particulate material such as sand for ballast.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a ballast apparatus that replaces sandbags or loose particulate material such as sand as the ballast used in barricades.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a solid, one-piece, highly portable ballast apparatus having a controlled weight.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a durable and reusable ballast device.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a ballast apparatus that eliminates the need to continuously monitor and frequently replenish ballast material on barricades.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a ballast apparatus that is easily affixed to a barricade or sign and resists dislodgment therefrom.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a ballast apparatus that is convenient to handle and easily stored during transport or for reuse.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a ballast apparatus that is crashworthy and performs in a predictable manner when inadvertently struck by a vehicle or other object.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a ballast apparatus that, when impacted, does not disintegrate into fragments or other debris that pose a hazard to road users and workers.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a ballast apparatus that is designed to have a shape that permits the ballast to fit within interstitial spaces within the structural members of existing barricades.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a ballast apparatus having surface features that permit the ballast to be placed within or attached to the structural members of existing barricades.
The present invention is an improved ballast apparatus that is useful to provide weight for barricades, signs and other structures requiring ballast for stability against wind and other forces that act on barricades and signs. The improved ballast apparatus is a one-piece, resilient, impact-resistant compression-molded rubber device having design features including a predetermined weight, shape, perimeter and holes that permit the device to be easily handled, quickly and securely affixed to or detached from barricade and sign structures, and stored for transport or between uses. The solid, resilient ballast device is unbreakable so that there is no loss of particulate ballast material or fragmentation into unsafe debris as a result of an inadvertent impact with a vehicle or other object. The weight of the ballast apparatus is easily predetermined and controlled because the apparatus is made in a compression molding process. The features of the improved ballast apparatus provide a reusable ballast that is useful with any existing or future barricade or sign that has an opening in a frame member to receive the ballast device or a frame member to which the ballast device may be attached.